With the international break now complete, attention turns swiftly back to the A-League and the thrilling final month of the regular season.
It’s been over a week and a half since the draw at Newcastle, plenty of time for Ruben Zadkovich to galvanise his troops for the crucial five games ahead.
More than enough time to also announce a couple of marquee fixtures at Optus Stadium in July. West Ham will play the Glory before taking on Tottenham a few days later. These big pre-season matches combined with the Women’s World Cup should provide an influx of football fever for all West Australians to enjoy.
As for Glory fans right now, they would enjoy nothing more than a return to the finals for the first time in three years. The spot is there for the taking and we have a chance of grasping it if we can hit our straps.
The trip to the Hunter saw a switch in formation with Jordan Elsey out suspended. The back five became a four with Darryl Lachman and Mark Beevers commanding the middle, flanked by Jack Clisby and Johnny Koutroumbis.
Trent Ostler made his way into the starting line-up for the first time this season, playing on the right side of the midfield. Occupying the other side was Keegan Jelacic, while Aaron McEneff paired up with Luke Bodnar in the centre. Ryan Williams and Adam Taggart continued to lead the line.
It’s come as a bit of a surprise to me how much Taggart has struggled since his sparkling double against the Victory. They remain his only two goals for the campaign, and he hasn’t shown the same confidence in front of goal since then.
His fitness hasn’t been the most ideal; the Newcastle game was his first 90-minute appearance of the season dating back to September. Not only that, but his link up between the other forwards hasn’t clicked yet.
At times he was visibly frustrated when the ball wasn’t falling his way. His day was summed up by a passage of play in second half stoppage time, when he was unable to convert a routine chance right in front of goal from an offside position.
Although our striker has been struggling, our other attacking outlets in this game stood up to the plate. Jelacic continues to amaze me with his quick feet and decision making in tight spaces. Once again he was our best chance creator, adding another assist to his name in what has been a breakout season.
Ryan Williams also impressed in this outing, particularly when he moved further out wide and had the chance to run at defenders. For most of this season Salim Khelifi has been the go-to for taking on direct opponents. Williams is just as explosive and should be utilised in his natural position as a winger. Playing as a second striker or just behind Taggart is not his preferred game.
If Taggart is unable to find form, Jelacic and Williams will be the two keys in unlocking defences and finding the net. It didn’t come as a shock they were both involved in grabbing the key equaliser in the 96th minute. The corner from Jelacic was perfectly placed for a glancing header at the near post. Williams got the flick on and snuck it past Michael Weier to grab what could prove to be a crucial point.
Defensively, I was relatively happy with the back four. Koutroumbis had his hands full dealing with Manabu Saito but did a decent job on the winger. Saito did however create the first goal with a beautiful cross over all the defenders and onto the head of Trent Buhagiar to give the Jets a 1-0 lead heading into half time.
Much of the ball was at the feet of Newcastle players but they weren’t able to do a lot with it. Going wide was their main option but once it got into the middle, the Glory defence was able to manage most of it without difficulty.
Our first goal was very similar to the one Bodnar scored against the same opponents in the previous fixture. A deep corner by Clisby to the back post was cushioned into the net by Ostler, doing everything in his power to keep his spot in the side. He had a decent outing but could be the unlucky one to miss out if we go back to playing with five in defence.
The second goal to give Newcastle back the lead came from Kosta Grozos, curling a first time shot away from Cameron Cook after a slight deflection by Clisby took it into his path. Another goal conceded in the last 15 minutes of a game. Bad habits continuing is not a good sign, and these late goals will be decisive if we continue to let them in.
Arthur Papas was not a happy man when the final whistle blew. They remain just above us on the table but have only managed one point from their last four games. Buhagiar and Saito were the biggest threats for the Jets, while Brandon O’Neill was solid against his old side.
Snatching the draw at the death keeps us within arms reach of Sydney in sixth, the gap now just three points. Three teams sit between us and the Sky Blues, one of which we can move in front of with a win on Saturday. Macarthur provide the final challenge at Macedonia Park, in what is sure to be another full house. There’s no understating how important each game is until the rest of the season. The first hurdle to finals is ahead and clearing it in front of the home faithful is a must.
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